Valve.



W. B. SHELP.

VALVE.

APPLICATION man OCT. 14, 1913.

Patented July 6, 1915 s anu r WILLIAM B. SHELP, 0F HOUSTON, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR TO MELLIE ESPERSON, OF HOUSTON, TEXAS.

VALVE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July ll, till-5,

Application filedwnictober M, 1913. Serial No. 795,032.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known. that I, VVILLIAM B. SHELF, a citizen of the United States, resident of Houston, county of Harris, and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Valves, of which the following is a specification, the principle of the 1nvention being herein explained and the best mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle, so as to distinguish it from other inventions.

My invention relates to valves, and particularly to that type of valves in which re siliency is an essential or desirable characteristic. Valves of thistype are-largely used in water pumps and in order to procure the required results, such valves should be so constructed as to fit perfectly upon the valve seat at all times and under normal conditions, so as to make a perfect seal and hence prevent leakage, as will be readily understood bythose skilled in the art. in the normal operation of a water pump particles of Wood, sand, gravel or other hard sub stances lodge, not infrequently, upon the valve seat and hence, as is obvious, tend to hold the valve from proper contact with such. seat, thus permitting leakage, some times of considerable extent, when the pres sure is reversed and the valve'is caused to exercise its' checking function. In order therefore to eliminate this leakage, rubber valves have been employed, the resiliency of whose scat-contact surface would perrnit them to assume an. irregular contour presented by an intervening obstruction and in the presence of the latter, make good or even perfect contact with the seat. The use of rubber has also made the valves comparatively silent in their operation, elimimating" the hammering which is a char acteristic of the use of metal valves, and also the breaking ofthe latter as a result of such hammering. The rubber valves heretofore used,'however, have been subject to certain deficiencies of which lack of rigidity and strength and expense of material have been prominent.

The object of my present invention is. to provide a valve for water pumps or other apparatus in which it may be used, which will embody all of the desirable features of rubber valves of the character heretofore used, which will be of increased eliiciency description set forth in detail certain means embodying my invention, the disclosed means, however, constituting but one of various mechanical forms in which the principle of my said invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawing:ligure 1 is a perspective view of a valve embodying my invention, a part of its structure being illustrated as broken away. l ig. 2 is an axial section of a fragmentary portion of said 'alve, upon a slightly enlarged scale. Fig. 3 is an axial section on a reduced scale of a typical valve seat structure showing a complete valve in. side elevation in connection therewith.

The figures of the drawing illustrate my invention as embodied in an ordinary disk checlevalve used in water pumps, in which the valve is provided with a central cylindrical bore 6*, Fig. 1, for receiving a guiderod 7, secured to a spider intersecting a valve opening surroiuided by a valve seat 8, Fig. 3. The free end of the rod 7 is capped with a nut, and interposed between the latter and the valve proper, is a coil-spring 9 which tends to hold the valve in contact with or move same toward the seat 8, as will be readily understood. The valve-disk, howevcr, instead of being of the usual construction is constructed as follows: A strip of fabric 1 of such length and width, .is first taken, as will produce the required diincnsions of the finished valve, and which has previously been impregnated with uncured rubber. or rubberized, as this condition is ordinarily referred to. This process of rubberizing is carried out by means of calenders as is well known to those skilled in the art and hence need not be described in detail herein. The rubberizing is, however, carried to such an extent as to thoroughly impregnate or incorporate the rubber in the fabric and also provide both surfaces thereof with a substantial layer of tho uncured rubber. The strip is then wound upon a mandrel to form spiral con- 5% greases volutions and finally to form cylindrical disk of the required dimensions which constitutes the main or body portion of the valve in which those fac s containing the dimension of Widtlnare parallel with each other, that is, in which the dimension of width of the fabric is parallel with the axis of the valve. The mandrel is then removed leaving a central cylindrical opening. The entire exterior of the disk is now covered with additional cured rubber to form outer envelop or casing consisting of the top 3 the bottom 1'. the outside 5 and inside 6, of considerable thickness, as shown in Fig. 2-. The structure so formed is now placed in a suitable mold and subjected to the usual curing or 'vulcanizing. during which the disk is closely confined so as to prevent expansion. The application of the heat, the simultaneous confinement of the disk and the resultant pressure causes the raw rubber to liquety, still further permeate the fabric and the entire mass of rubber to coalesce and form a homogeneous binder. part of which 1S incorporated in the fabric I and which. when the rubber cools, unites and secures the adjacent convolutions of fabric to each other. The resultant structure has all of the characteristics of a mass or" cured rubber formed into" a disk and reinforced by a strip of perforate and flexible material Wound to form spiral convolutionsseparated by intermediate spiral con *olutions 2 of rubber. A cross-section of the structure presents, as shown in. Big. 2, alternately oc curring layers of fabrie 1 and rubberi with rubber incorporated in the fab ic. v

The fabric being flexible does no prevent the disk as a Whole from bar in a certain l I required degree offlexibility or resiliency and at the same time, being tough and non elastic, is less liable torupture, also less subject to Wear, and thus; increases the strength and life of the valve. The outside of the Valve consisting of pure vulcanized rubber, it will be seen that the contact sur face thereof has all of the characteristics a solid rubber valve of the usual construction, and after this easing Wears off, a sur- Face having still many of those characteristics remains. r

The above described method of construction may be modified by omitting the preliminary rubberizing of the fabric and placing upon the strip of fabric a similar strip of uncured rubber and then Winding; some 'rally to form the main body of the disk. e subsequent vulcanizing process then causes the rubber to flow into the fabric, the resultant product being substantially the same as in the first described process. I have also found it preferable in some cases to cut the fabric used on the bias so that the warp and Wool": threads thereof will run in a direction angular with respect to the -sions of Width mitt-ruling the major transverse dimension 1 valves axis.

such that each tl .QlliilOl'IDS an angle lessthan. ninety degrees with a' line passing therethrough W .ie 1 parallel with the axis of the valve. By this arrangement an in creased resilient-. is obtained "while rctaiir ing the desired physiml characteristics of the fabric. I

A still further mcdilieati of said abovcdescribed method rz'iay be resorted to by lizlliing a sheet of fabric a number of times greater ivi than the ickuess of the required valve... subjecting it to the rubber-it ing process, then v iiidin' it spirally and. their c'utti 'zito disks ol the require-Ll thir ans oi? a. suitable sharp tool.

@0138 described struc- .u'e n'r suitable manner, to forni puppet or mu valve comprising in its ructure convolutions of i'lCXllilL iaterial having its dime parallel with the valves 2. [is a new valve comprising i convolutions oi flexible H1515 cruxediate convolutions of e astic material, in which the dimension of Will ii of couvoli. s in a direction parallel with the axis valve.

3. As a new article of iiianuiacturc, a valve having a crossscction presenting alternat-e layers 0t flexible and elastic material. :iid lay-- ers running in the direction oi the vulves axis. 1 As a new article oi. valve having main oi body portion comprising in its st uctu're ecuvoluiions or lay ers of fabric. arranged endwise. the trans verse dimension of said layers intersecting the opposite faces of such main or body portron.

5. As a new article manufacture, a. valve having a main or body portion comprising in its structure us of fabric arranged endmse and inter- (Y mediate convolutions of rubber the trans .cture, a

.niauufacturc a,

convolutions of lay-,

r the vi 7'1" opgosue faces, 0i such Jun or may p01 tum.

As new article 0f nmnufactum, a min: comm-15mg in 21s s J'ruciuive cmnvoiw tions 0:! fabric Mung lts Win-p and W902i verse imensicns of each in'aersecizimg threads 2111932121113 related to the 011331081139 faces of said valve a new article 0f manufacture, a valve COH'l-Plibliflg in its structure convolu- E. V. HIARDWAY? MAY fi iorrrgzemmzz'. 

